PESHAWAR
Chief Minister Mahmood Khan on Tuesday visited district Upper Dir and addressed party workers despite orders from the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) not to attend events in any local council falls in districts where the second round of local body elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) have been scheduled.
The ECP had announced the March 27 date for the second phase of local government elections in 18 districts of the province and also issued a strict code of conduct for public office holders.
Earlier a day, the ECP had written a letter to DIR district administration regarding the Prime Minister visit to the district in connection with upcoming LG polls.
It said in the letter that to stop public meeting and that the PM cannot visit the constituency after the election schedule, the visit of the prime minister would be a violation of the rules.
The ECP’s Code of Conduct said that the president, prime minister, speaker, deputy speaker of any assembly, chairman and deputy chairman of any Senate, federal or provincial ministers, chief ministers, advisers to the prime minister, or any holder of a public office cannot visit an area where an election is being held.
According to the schedule elections will be held for the posts of mayor and chairman of tehsil and city councils and different categories of members in village and neighbourhood councils in 18 districts, including Abbottabad, Mansehra, Battagram, Torghar, Kohistan Upper, Kohistan Lower, Kolai-Palas, Kohistan, Swat, Malakand, Shangla, Lower and Upper Dir, Upper and Lower Chitral, Kurram, Orakzai and North and South Waziristan.
The first phase of elections was held in 17 districts on Dec 19, 2021.
In the second phase, elections will be held for 65 posts of the tehsil and city council chairmen and mayors in 18 districts.
